34th Annual Scientific Meeting proceedings

Objectives:

Discospondylitis rarely causes vertebral subluxation leading to motor deficits. In such cases, conservative treatment is often inadequate, necessitating surgical stabilization.

Methods:

A 12-year-old male Yorkshire Terrier with grade 2 modified Frankel score (non-ambulatory paraplegic), a 1-year-old female Border Collie with grade 4 neurological signs, and a 7-year-old male Maltese with grade 4 neurological signs were presented. All dogs exhibited marked pain and crepitus on spinal column palpation. Computed tomography confirmed discospondylitis and vertebral subluxation in all three cases. Antimicrobial treatment was initiated in each dog.

A minimally invasive dorsal approach to the thoracolumbar vertebrae was performed, followed by reduction, realignment, and stabilization of the vertebral subluxation, avoiding the infected disk. Stabilization was achieved with a single transpedicular cortical screw on each side in two of the dogs; in the Maltese, this was not possible due to articular facet dysplasia diagnosed on CT. A cerclage wire was applied around the thickest portions of the spinous processes between the two subluxated vertebrae with a single twist to enhance stabilization.

Results:

All dogs recovered completely without complications. Pain on palpation of the spinal column was absent the day after surgery. Vertebral fusion was confirmed in 2 dogs via radiography 8 weeks post-surgery.

Conclusions:

Minimally invasive approaches and minimal stabilization distant from the infectious focus may be sufficient for managing discospondylitis-related vertebral subluxation in dogs.